When Someone Dies – What Should I Do?
When a loved one dies, you may not know where to start. Here are some thoughts which may be helpful; they are not authoritive authoritative, or exhaustive, just a suggested guide to take you along the path during those early days and weeks.
You will need a written certification of death.
If your loved one dies in hospital, then the certificate will be obtained from there. Ask the Ward Sister or the A. & E. staff for guidance.
If your loved one dies at home, then a certification of death is obtained from his/her G.P. who should be called as soon as possible and advised of the situation.
The Funeral Director of your choice should be notified of the situation.
Contact the Registrar, in Wigan tel. 705025 or 705000. Arrange an appointment to register the death and ask what documentation you should take with you.
When you attend the appointment, the Registrar will issues you with a Green Form indicating that you have fulfilled the requirements [under] of the law. You should also take the opportunity while you are there to obtain sufficient copies of the Death Certificate to provide one to the [D.S.S.] Department of Work and Pensions (formerly known as the DSS) in case of pension or benefits, [The Metro] the local authority (in Wigan this is Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council) in case of Community Charge, Banks/Building Societies where accounts may need to be stopped, Solicitor if a Will is being held, Insurance companies where policies are in existence. Some of these places will return the Death Certificate after a while, so you may decide just to obtain a few copies and wait for their return so that you can send them on elsewhere.
The Green Form must be taken to the Funeral Director. Arrange for an appointment to discuss the details of the funeral. At this appointment the Funeral Director will note all the details he requires to arrange for the church/crematorium to be advised. Should you require a personalised service sheet for the funeral, then the Funeral Director can arrange for it to be produced. The Funeral director will deal with all the financial arrangement relating to the funeral.
You will be contacted by a Minister of the church so that a visit to you can be arranged to discuss the details of the funeral service including hymns/additional music/family members speaking etc.
You will need to –
Contact the Department of Work and Pensions [formerly known as the D.S.S] to cancel any pension/benefits that were being paid; you will need the N.I. number of your loved one as well as a copy of the Death Certificate.
Visit the GP/Dentist of your loved one with the N.I. number and the Death Certificate.
Advise the local authority in respect of payment of Community Charge , again a copy of Death Certificate required.
Advise any banks/building societies/insurance companies who will also require a copy of the Death Certificate.
The holders of the loved one are Will as well as the executors of any such will.
You are advised to keep a running total of anyexpenses concerned with the funeral.
Bills paid after your loved ones death.
Any income accrued as a result of settling your loved one’s financial affairs – the executors will need to include these details when probate is being arranged.
In the longer term, you may need to place a headstone on a grave plot. It is not recommended that you do this on a new plot at St. Paul’s within 3 months of the burial, because a certain amount of time is required for the soil to settle in the grave. {settlement will take place during that time.}
Contact a Monumental Mason to receive advice and explain your needs. Do be aware that a headstone in a churchyard may well be subject to restrictions as to its size and what can be engraved upon it (click here for regulations). The Monumental Mason will have to seek approval and permission from the church before the headstone can be placed into the churchyard.
All financial details with respect to the headstone will be handled by the Monumental Mason.
The headstone always belongs to the family of the deceased and it is their responsibility to maintain it in a condition so that it does not become a danger to people visiting, or working in the churchyard.
If the headstone is already in place on an existing grave plot which has been reopened for another burial, then it may be your wish to have a new entry engraved upon it. In this case, make your need known to a Monumental Mason who may well be able to comply with your wishes without removing the headstone from the grave. It may also be in your interests to request that he check the security/stability of the headstone at the same time. The monumental Mason will deal with all the financial detail pertinent to this additional inscription.
We hope that you find this information useful; remember that the funeral director and the church Minister are available to help you after the initial contact.